Our Battered Suitcases
by sofaritsalright
Summary: A take on what could possibly happen during the revival. Rory is a New York Times writer and Jess is an author in a different city, but always traveling. They meet up through the seasons that all lead to the wedding of Luke and Lorelai.
1. Home

**A/N:** Hey, lovelies! Guess who got back into her old account! And, for this little happy day, I decided that I'm going to start yet another fic. I have actually written quite a bit for this one and I hope that it keeps going. I'm going to try to update my other ones as well since life hasn't been as busy lately. As you can see from the summary, this takes place during the revival and what I hope to happen! Please comment, favorite, and follow if you like it!

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The snow looked different in Stars Hollow than it did in New York City. This was the first thing Rory noted as soon as her cab rolled into town. It was like something out of a fairytale, looking like snow globe. Something that she had never noticed when she actually lived there, but every winter she came back, she seemed to love it more. She finally understood why Lorelai was so crazy about the white flecks that fell from the sky. It was different in the city. There is was always mush, turning dark colors from the taxis and cars that rolled through non-stop. Sure, it was pretty when you looked up, but when you inevitably stepped in the pile of black and brown slush, you realize that there's no place like home. She tells the driver to pull over at one of her most frequented spots in town before heading home first and smiles upon stepping out of the backseat. Even the air was different; crisper, less polluted. She stared up for a movement, taking it all in, before looking across the small town square and noting the townsfolk rolling in the snow, making snowmen aplenty and having snowball fights. What made it homier was Taylor chasing Kirk. "Home sweet home," she chuckles to herself as she pays the cabbie and removes her suitcase from the trunk. It was then that she got to turn around and look straight into the windows of Luke's Diner. Her mother was at the counter, obviously bickering with her fiancé as she gripped her coffee mug tight. Whatever they were going on about, Lorelai was truly giving it her all, going on and on, making Luke grown more irritated by the second. This was an all too familiar sight, but nothing screamed home like seeing her mother being her over dramatic self. Instead of making up scenarios on what they could be talking about, the young woman turned the corner and walked in. Even hearing the familiar sound of the bell above her surrounded her in warmth.

"Lucy, I'm home!" she said as she stood near the doorway, smiling brightly for when her mother finally turned around. And when she did, Lorelai was quick to stand up and run over to her only child, almost tripping and falling on her face in the process. "I've missed you so much," Rory tells her as they hold onto each other tight, neither wanting to let go just yet.

"Oh, you have no idea, baby." Lorelai wants to stay attached so badly, but she can tell that she's almost suffocating her only offspring. "You're not leaving my side this week, ya hear me?" She finally lets go, pointing at Rory before going in for one more hug. "I'm sorry, it just feels like I haven't seen you in forever."

"I was home for thanksgiving," Rory reminds her, rolling her eyes, but still giving into the second hug.

"Twice in a month isn't enough." Lorelai turns around, her eyes finding Luke. "Tell her, Luke. Tell her she needs to stay so mommy can take care of her like the good old days."

"She can take care of herself like the grown up she is," Luke reminds her before headed towards the pair with a fresh cup of coffee in his hand that he passes to Rory. She gratefully accepts and sniffs it before taking a sip. "It is good to have you home, Rory. We've missed you."

"And I've missed your coffee," she chuckles.

"And what, no one has missed me?"

That voice made Rory almost drop the mug as her head shot up. She didn't even need to second-guess. It was that voice. The one that she had fallen in love with. Almost instantly, she smiles softly as her brows knit together. It had been a couple years since their last encounter and she wasn't exactly sure when they're meet again. Rory pushed her way through the happy couple after setting her coffee down and made her way over the the man. "Jess," she breathes, almost unable to believe his presence. "Where'd you come from?" Her blue eyes are still wide as she looks him over, top to bottom. She didn't exactly mean to, but she had to make sure that he wasn't some delusion that came from being back in Stars Hollow.

"Upstairs," he says simply, giving her a crooked smile.

Rory rolls her eyes before cautiously going in for a hug. To her surprise, his arms embraced her without a second thought and she felt his head rest against hers as he softly pressed a kiss on her head. It wasn't always like that of course, but since they had grown up, a lot has changed. Even the friendliness between them. Although, both of them could still spot Lorelai across the diner, looking on with a cautious eye as they stood still. In an attempt to keep her mother happy, Rory pulls back, creating a small distance between them, but still keeps her hands on his forearms. "It is so good to see you." She almost wants to cry as she looks at him. It's like stepping in a time machine to where they were at seventeen. It didn't matter that they were both well off now, it still felt more familiar than any relationship Rory held in the past.

"You too." He's quick to look anywhere but her as he shoves his hands in his pockets in a shy fashion. They always seemed to be nervous after not seeing one another for quite awhile. She remembered the first time, when they were upstairs in Luke's apartment, when they were both teenagers with nervous hands and racing hearts. The anxiety from that moment seemed to seep into who they were now after every time they met up, but nowadays it was familiar, something that was worth it. It showed that they were still who they were. "How long are you here?"

"New Years day," she nods, "you?"

His eyebrows rise at the answer. " _Huh_. Me too."

From that alone, she could tell that he just thought about the duration of his stay. Being an author wasn't exactly a full time job that kept you in the office all day like it did her. Luckily, she was able to work from home during the holiday and send in her column early in the morning before the Times went to print.

"Is that so?" she chuckles.

"It is now," he shrugs.

They stay lost in each others gaze for what seems like a few minutes, but they're torn away by none other than Lorelai herself. "Did I not just say that you're not leaving my side this week?"

Rory glances over at her mother and shakes her head. "You know, other people do exist," she jokes.

Lorelai's eyes grow wide. "Yes, but I'm the one that matters, remember?"

"I guess I'll talk to you tomorrow, if she ever lets go of me." Rory tells him.

"That is if I don't glue you to me while you sleep."

Jess can hardly hold back a very rare chuckle. She was always going to be the same old Lorelai. He looks from the mother to her daughter and turns his head towards the door. "Beat it."


	2. Madly

**A/N:** Before you read this chapter, I need to point out that it might seem as if I sped things up a little here with Jess and Rory, but I promise that you'll be reading more about their previous encounters in later chapters and how they got to this point in their friendship/relationship. I feel as if some people will be wondering why I did such a thing, but trust me, you'll find out in due time.

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At four in the morning, Rory made her way to a familiar hideaway in Stars Hollow in a heavy winter jacket and tie up boots. A single text woke her up and in minutes, she was out the door, quiet enough not to wake the engaged couple upstairs. As she made her way onto the bridge, she shook her head. Smoke flowed from his mouth into the winter's air, giving him a cliché artsy look that he hated so much. "I had a feeling it was you that texted me," Rory said quietly, not wanting to spook him from whatever was flowing through his mind, making it seem as if he was in deep thought.

He turned to her, a hazy look on his face as his eyes met hers. "Yeah? What gave it away?"

"Perhaps it was the Kerouac quote," she suggests, sitting down next to him. She almost asks why he changed his number again, but she decides against it, knowing that Jess was Jess and he changed it about every month to this very day.

Right away, she smelled the alcohol on his being. It made sense why he came here now. Not only to think in a place that he once loved in a town that he hated, but because drinking must have warmed him in the dead of winter. Rory, on the other hand, was freezing to her very core. It was obvious to Jess when she spotted the flask in his hand because he raised it up to her, offering her a sip or two. "Whiskey?" she asks, already knowing the answer.

"You know me so well," he nods, keeping his eyes on the frozen lake, but seeing her take a sip out of the corner of his eye. He almost smiles at the scene.

This was only the second time he had seen Rory drink, although he had heard stories about her college years. The first time was in Rome when they met unexpectedly at a hotel restaurant. She was doing fieldwork and he was on a round-the-world trip promoting his newest novel while taking a break in a city he'd always wanted to explore. That, to both of them, was a night to remember and the reason why they were still nervous at this very moment. It was hard to forget the fact that the last time they met two years ago their bodies were warm against each other, neither of them wanting to leave the bed in her motel room. It was the first time they had been together in such a way and it still seemed so right to both of them. Maybe it was a fleeting thing that would never happen again, but it was apparent by their faces that every time they looked at one another, they were thinking about it. The way that their pulses matched up to one another and the way that their hands explored every inch of each other's bodies. And quite possibly, the best part of it all being the way that they were afterwards – happy, content, and more at home than they had ever felt before.

"How's the New York lifestyle?" he asks quickly, nudging her knee with his.

"Not too shabby," Rory says, shrugging. "I'm mostly in a office nowadays, but still, it's not the worst place I've ever seen."

"I bet you at least have a nice view of the city from wherever you are."

Rory nods, smiling a bit. The New York skyline was one of her favorite sights to see. "You'd be correct," she tells him before taking another swig of the beverage, letting the warmth slide down her throat and settle in her belly. "Where are you now?"

He raises an eyebrow as he looks over at her. It was the first time all day that he really, truly looked at her and took in her beauty for the thousandth time since they met when they were kids. "I'm currently in Seattle, but I'm starting to get that itch again."

"You've always been a rolling stone." She comments, but her tone is almost bitter. She doesn't mean to come across that way, but to this day, she wishes that he had stayed put in Stars Hollow for just a little bit longer. That, or she would've run away with him when given the chance. Maybe then she, too, would be a rolling stone.

" _Nothing behind me, everything ahead of me, as is ever so on the road_." Another Kerouac quote from the Beat lover. Although Rory wasn't the biggest fan of Jack and his endeavors on the road, she had read his works when she started to miss Jess after he moved away. It was one way that she was able to remain close to him even though he ran away to California. She loved him in her own peculiar way – and maybe, yes, she was in love with him and she had to let it go, but she'd never let go of their love for literature. To this day, he was the only one who understood her deep love for books and words.

"You're on a roll with those Kerouac quotes tonight, aren't you?" she chuckles, not understanding.

"What can I say, alcohol brings out the pained writer in my soul." He lets his feet dangle over the bridge as he leans back, looking up towards the stars. They were awfully present in a small town where lights didn't pollute everything. In cities such as Seattle and New York, stars were rare unless there was an extreme power outage or if you got out into the middle of nowhere. It was definitely a sight to see.

They remained quiet and content for a few minutes, but Jess was able to tell that Rory started shivering and stood up without a word, reaching his hand out for hers. She accepted it and pulled herself up, still in silence. Most of the time, silence for a Gilmore was a death sentence, but with him, it was just as comforting as talking was. In the words of the painful Ernest Hemingway, " _I do not need to get used to your silence. I already know it. I quite possibly love all of it_." It was as simple as that.

The pair walked hand-in-hand a block over back to the diner. The lights were already on, making it known that Luke was getting ready for the day. Jess almost thought of helping him get prepped, but his slightly inebriated and terribly drowsy mind was saying otherwise. "Want me to walk you back home?" Of course she didn't need his company getting there seeing that it was only a few blocks away like everything in the town, but he thought he'd be somewhat gentlemanly.

The few shots of whiskey had Rory feeling a little gutsy, a little unlike her usual self. "Can I stay here tonight?"

"You don't even have to ask." He opened the door up for the young woman and watched as she strolled through the diner and up the stairs.

"Rory?" Luke mouths to his nephew as he watches her as well. All Jess can do is shrug. He was glad that she was staying over, although it was quite odd for her. She was supposed to be at home, in her own bed, not sharing one with him in that cramped apartment that Luke and Jess once called home.

Once he got upstairs, she was already shredding her coat and boots and climbing under the covers. He could see now that she was still her sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt underneath it all and that she truly had rushed to find him after receiving his text. Of course, this wasn't exactly how he thought the night would end, but he was grateful that it was heading in that direction. Even though they hadn't seen each other for a while – or even talked, for that matter – it was as if no time had passed. Though they weren't together, nothing felt more right than when she was lying in his arms, clothed or unclothed.

He followed suit and crawled onto the other side of the bed. He wasn't sure if he should take the couch or not, but she seemed more than inviting. The second his head hit the pillow, her arm snaked around his middle and she rested her head closer to him. "You feel like home," she whispered into his ear, sending shivers down his spine. They hadn't exchanged a whole lot of words since they had arrived, but it didn't matter with them. It never did.

Suddenly, the text he had sent her earlier popped into his head, making him smile. He wasn't sure if it was the fact that he had downed half of his flask already on top of the few beers he had at the diner or if it was because it was almost sickeningly true, but it made him smile. " _We agreed to love each other madly_." That had always been the truth between them. Every time they met up on a whim, whether it was planned or not, that seemed to be the way things would go.

They agreed to love each other madly and that was all that they needed to keep them going through the chilly winter and the week that was ahead of them.

"Go to sleep," he whispers, not knowing how to respond. The truth was that she felt like home to him too, she always had, but he wasn't sure how to express it.


	3. Morning

**A/N:** I am so glad you guys are liking this story so far! Thank you for all the love and support even though it's only been up for a few days. I promise to keep these updates rolling. I've actually written quite a bit of it so far, so I hope you're prepared! As always, please keep commenting, favoriting, and following. You know how happy and motivated it keeps me! (:

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Rory shifts around in the small bed, feeling a set of eyes on her. They were strange, yet familiar, and she could tell almost instantly that it wasn't the man sleeping next to her. As soon as she opens her eyes, she spots Lorelai with a confused look on her face. Rory squints, not ready for whatever was going to come next. Instead, she nudges Jess in the side, making him groan and turn on his side before folding the pillow over his face. She swears that he's a child most of the time, especially when it came to sleep. "Mom," Rory greets her with a groggy voice, seemingly half asleep at this point.

"Daughter," Lorelai says, squatting down next to the bed. "Wanna tell me what I'm looking at here, because from my perspective, it's not something good. Nor is it anything I ever wanted to see, but let's just say that in my forty-something years on this earth, I have, in fact, seen worse. However, if you're already catching on, this is rather compromising, so tell me why I woke up to my daughter missing and finding her in a bed next to Jess. Jess, Rory. _Jess_."

Rory props herself up on her elbows, getting the urge to roll her eyes. As usual, Lorelai was over-reacting... and perhaps forgetting that she wan't a child anymore; she could do what she pleases, even if it's unpleasant to Lorelai. "Mom, it's nothing. I didn't want to walk home. No biggie."

The older Gilmore watches as her daughter rubs her eyes, looking as innocent as she did when she was a little girl. But Lorelai had to face the truth sooner or later; her little girl was growing up and she could do whatever she wanted. Even if it was with Jess whom she still wasn't particularly fond of. As much as she wanted to like him for the sake of Rory and Luke, there was still something about him that rubbed her the wrong way. Maybe she was still holding onto the past and remembering the bratty kid he once was - the kid that broke Rory's heart and left her in pieces for so long. No matter what she did, the grudge was still there. After all this time, Lorelai thought that it was probably time to let it go. There was obviously something in her daughter that completely adored the man she was lying in bed next to, so much so that she snuck out of the house in the middle of the night like a teenager. She didn't see the appeal, but whatever it was, she could still tell that Rory was attached and as much as she wished differently, it wasn't going to fade. If it hadn't faded in the past eleven years, it sure as hell wasn't going to now. Slowly, but surely, her eyes glanced over to Jess who was finally unfolding the pillow away from his face and sitting up, looking as if he had no idea where he was. "Jess," Lorelai greets him, a feigned smile placed carefully on her lips.

The brunette man squinted his eyes as they darted over to the concerned mother and all he could do was let out a groan. It was too early and he was too hungover for this. "Wha-" he started to say, but let it go, not wanting to upset either of the Gilmore girls. As badly as he wanted to get back to bed, to wrap his arms around Rory and pull her close, he could see that it was no longer an option for him. Instead, he rises himself out of the bed and heads straight to the bathroom to get changed, all without speaking a single word to either of them.

"He's pleasant in the morning," Lorelai comments, raising an eyebrow.

"He's usually better than this, but I think you spooked him a bit."

Lorelai stands up as she hears the word _usually_ ringing in her ears. "Usually?" she repeats, pursing her lips together as she crosses her arms. "You've been holding out on me." A scoff escapes from her lips as she points at her daughter. "Why have you been holding out on me? And here, all along, I thought you loved me."

This time, Rory actually _does_ roll her eyes. The girl is able to pull herself out from under the covers and stands next to her mom. "You know why I've been holding out on you."

"Because of him?" She asks, almost not getting the point.

"Yes, because of him," Rory nods as her eyes widen. "I know for a fact that you do not like him, so why in the world would I tell you?"

Lorelai's hurt by the question and she lets her arms drop as her face does as well. "Honey," she says, reaching out for her daughter and pulling her in close before resting her head upon hers. "Just because I have some faults with him does not mean that you don't have to tell me things. We tell each other everything, remember? No judgement here, okay?" Okay, maybe there was a _little_ judgement, but Lorelai was careful to leave that part out.

The younger woman nods, "Sorry." The two quickly break apart as Jess opens the door once more, walking out in fresh clothes and well done hair. (Rory never knew how he got it to be just the perfect amount of messy, but she guessed that it took more paste and gel than she could ever imagine.) He stared at them momentarily before making his way downstairs. "You think he heard us?"

Lorelai is fast to scrunch up her face and nod. "This place isn't exactly big. There's no room for private conversations."

After the encounter in the diner, Rory's thankful to be home with a mother who was no longer upset or bitter. Although, as they strung the popcorn together, she could tell that the wheels were turning in her head, wondering what was going on between the two. As much as she tried to joke about John Oliver having a crush on her or being best friends with Amy Schumer, she couldn't stop thinking of the young man in the living room who was watching old re-runs of Columbo together. The men were both staring at the TV with discontent looks upon their faces, squinting, yet getting it. Occasionally, Jess would make a comment, making Luke laugh or they'd take a swig of beer, but other than that, they seemed to be struck with silence. Which wasn't exactly a big surprise. Both Rory and Lorelai knew that was the kicker of knowing that they were truly related.

Rory could feel her mothers stare as she strung the popcorn together, trying to get in the holiday spirit, but it wasn't helping. Lorelai may have been pricking herself with the sewing needle, but she was too curious. "Are you ever going to tell me?" she asks.

She raises her eyebrows, almost looking irritated as her eyes switch between the living room and her mother. "Do you not understand that he's in an earshot? Probably overhearing us like he did this morning?"

"You're going to tell me later though, right?"

A reluctant sigh leaves the young woman's chest as she shakes her head. "Yes, I'm going to tell you later."

Lorelai smiles wide, feeling as if she's won a tough battle. "Alright!" she screams, actually making the men turn their heads momentarily to give her an odd look. "What? Stop staring and keep going back to your baffling silence. Seriously, I don't understand how you two do it. You should really think about becoming munks and taking a vow of silence. I'm sure you'd be rather successful."

Luke shakes his head. "We're men, we don't need to constantly chat and rant on and on and on unlike you do. Then again, the two of us don't drink excessive amounts of coffee, so maybe we don't understand what the hype is about."

"Stand down, solider," Jess says, raising the bottle of beer to his lips.


End file.
